2013 Lexus ES300h — a hybrid butler, at your service

The new ES300h gets its bones from the revamped 2013 Toyota Avalon. (All photos: Lexus USA)

The new ES300h gets its bones from the revamped 2013 Toyota Avalon. (All photos: Lexus USA)

Image 2 of 9

Except for the "hybrid" flashes, it looks much like an ES350, the non-hybrid sister of the ES300h.

Except for the "hybrid" flashes, it looks much like an ES350, the non-hybrid sister of the ES300h.

Image 3 of 9

That L symbol has acquired the same sort of upscale status as, say, BMW or Audi, although some might argue with that.

That L symbol has acquired the same sort of upscale status as, say, BMW or Audi, although some might argue with that.

Image 4 of 9

The bamboo trim on the steering wheel and dashboard sets off the ES300h.

The bamboo trim on the steering wheel and dashboard sets off the ES300h.

Image 5 of 9

It takes a while to get used to all the technology, but at least there's a simple on-off/volume knob for the audio system.

It takes a while to get used to all the technology, but at least there's a simple on-off/volume knob for the audio system.

Photo: 3:10 00:29:12, David D

Image 6 of 9

Lexus adds a "manumatic" to the continuously variable transmission, although it begs the point, given that this is not really a performance car.

Lexus adds a "manumatic" to the continuously variable transmission, although it begs the point, given that this is not really a performance car.

Image 7 of 9

The big dial on the left can switch faces from a hybrid system monitor to a straight-out tachometer when you put the car into "Sport" mode.

The big dial on the left can switch faces from a hybrid system monitor to a straight-out tachometer when you put the car into "Sport" mode.

Image 8 of 9

Lexus offers heated and chilled seats as part of a $1,370 option package.

Lexus offers heated and chilled seats as part of a $1,370 option package.

Image 9 of 9

2013 Lexus ES300h — a hybrid butler, at your service

1 / 9

Back to Gallery

The butler idea didn’t really occur to me until I approached the 2013 Lexus ES300h one night. As I got close to it, the interior lights swooshed softly on, much like stage lights. Then my feet were illuminated by a glowing bath of puddle lights hidden in the bottom of the driver’s outside mirror. The proximity key fob, which was activating all these lights, also sent another message to the car’s innards and as I put my hand on the door handle the fob’s signals silently unlocked the door.

This car is a butler. It is deferential without being obsequious, polite but not fawning. In sum, it is the automotive equivalent of a trained butler – it knows when to speak and, more important, it knows when to simply do its job unobtrusively and then disappear.

Lexus, which came to American shores in the fall of 1989 (the 1990 LS400 luxo sedan), has spent a quarter of a century figuring out what it is that Americans want in their upscale cars. And the traits of the aforementioned butler are essential to the Lexus DNA.

Long-distance touring machine

Now that the servile portion of Lexus is out of the way, what do we have with the ES300h? First off, it’s important to understand that the ES line is the quintessential middle-of-the-road for Lexus. For years, the ES was a gussied-up Toyota Camry (Toyota is the parent of Lexus) and a lot of people bought it because of the increasing reverence accorded that “L” symbol in the grille. For the 2013 Lexus ES350 and ES300h, Lexus turned to the new Toyota Avalon platform, slightly longer than the Camry, and fashioned what is now a quite comfortable long-distance touring machine that can be had for somewhere just north of $40,000, a benchmark for the lower echelon of luxury cars.

The (non-hybrid) ES350 is the main attraction in this line – it sports a 268-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 – and will be the dominant seller in the ES series. The ES300h, aka the hybrid version, combines a four-cylinder gasoline engine with two electric motors for a total of 200 horsepower, driven through a continuously variable automatic transmission. I mention the ES350 because the question will invariably come down to this: do I buy the less expensive gas version and spend the savings on the additional gas I’ll have to burn, or do I suck it up and splurge for the hybrid, banking on the inevitability of higher gas prices and the savings I’ll enjoy with the hybrid?

For most cars, the gap in price between hybrid and gasoline-powered cars is big, on the order of $5,000 or more. With the ES line, Lexus has pared it down to only $2,880 (ES350 base prices is $36,370; ES300h starts at $39,250.) That’s not so bad, especially when you consider that the ES350’s fuel mileage figures are 21/31 mpg city/highway, and the ES300h turns in a more parsimonious 40/39 mpg city/highway.

But keep in mind that options will boost the car’s price. Our test model started out at $38,850 (On the Lexus Web site, it’s risen $400 to $39,250), and with options rose to $42,985. That included such essentials as “blind spot mirror w/rear cross traffic alert” and a $1,370 “luxury package” that includes heated and chilled seats.

A more relaxed ride than the German cars

On the road, the ES300h is predictably Lexus-quiet and tarmac-compliant. The hybrid drive train will give you enough power so you don’t have to worry about merging on to freeways, but it is a hair slower than its ES350 stablemate. But the ES350 doesn’t have that wonderfully silent electric component. On the center console of the ES300h is a switch for Eco/Normal/Sport driving modes, all of which makes it a faster or slower car. But you do notice the difference when switching to Sport mode – it’s much faster off the line and, somewhat disconcertingly, the left-hand dial in the instrument panel switches from a hybrid performance monitor to a tachometer. The ride is smooth and the suspension absorbs most of the modern American roadbed flaws. Some critics say the car just doesn’t handle like a BMW or an Audi, but Lexus isn’t trying to be a BMW or Audi. Lexus is aiming at the customer who has been down that Teutonic road and now wants something a bit more relaxed. It’s a matter of taste, a matter of what you want.

The ES300h cabin is wildly Lexus (that’s an oxymoron; little about Lexus is wild), which is to say it has that well-tooled sense of comfort and burnishing you’d expect to find in the library of an English castle – lots of stitching on the leather seats, bamboo trim on the steering wheel and dashboard, discreet lighting, that kind of thing. The front seats are 10-way power adjustable and the steering wheel has power tilt-and-telescope. If you can’t get comfortable in this car, think about walking. There were a few off-putting items, however – if you switch on the system that tilts the outside driver’s mirror downward when reversing, the mirror does go down, but then it also goes left, which screws up your sense of where you are backing. And because of the hybrid’s battery and electronics package, the trunk’s size has decreased to about 12 cubic feet, more than three cubic feet less than the ES350.

One last thing, however….. as we mentioned earlier, the ES350 and ES300h are based on the new Avalon platform. The Toyota Avalon, while admittedly not a Lexus, does have a starting price of $31,785. So a lot of this may depend on how important that distinctive L badge is to your own sense of who you are.